Rodney Dent II, a 25-year-old African American man, was killed on December 4, 2020, in Ennis, Texas. Dent and 23-year-old Caleb Clark were sitting in a parked car in front of their grandmother’s home when a drive-by shooting struck both men. Each was hit by thirteen bullets and died at the scene.

Investigators report the shooting was tied to a dispute over Clark’s recent relationship with a woman who had previously dated 24-year-old Dontriel Perry. Witnesses said Perry and another person were seen loading firearms and that Perry drove past the house on the day of the shooting, shouting from a white SUV. Officers from Ennis, Waxahachie and the Texas Rangers developed Perry as the primary suspect; he admitted handling a firearm of the same caliber and was placed in the SUV that day.

On June 23, 2023, a jury convicted Perry of capital murder and he received life without parole. Anyone who knew Rodney Dent II or has information about the events leading up to December 4, 2020, is asked to come forward.